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Funeral directors are significantly more likely to develop amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a neurodegenerative disease that leads to muscle weakness, paralysis, and eventually respiratory failure and death. 

Researchers said the latest findings suggest that funeral directors are more at risk for ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, because of exposure to formaldehyde used in embalming fluid.

The latest study used data from the US National Longitudinal Mortality Study (NLMS), which involved almost 1.5 million adults.

After calculating the intensity and probability of formaldehyde exposure for each job and industry sector, researchers found that men in jobs with a high probability of exposure to formaldehyde were around three times as likely to die of ALS as men who had not been exposed to formaldehyde at all.

The findings were published online in the Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery & Psychiatry.